Hi there,
I'm looking for advice regarding "superchipping" my Renault Trafic 1.9 DCI 100PS.
Will it improve my van's performance with regards to fuel economy and increased BHP???
Are there any downsides to ECU remapping??
And who would you recommmend to do this??

Would you care to elaborate? I had my 306 HDi done, BHP and torque improved considerably and MPG improved. As long as it doesnt overstress the engine an ECU remap is good.

Its only on petrols where a remap doesnt really increase overall power.

Some people might say "Well it stresses the engine" and to them I say rubbish, if it's done correctly. I have analysed my ECU software before and after mapping and also engine parameters such as oil temp, induction temperatures and calculated BMEP, all stay within what I would call very reasonable limits.

Had Merc V-Class and VW caravell TDi "chipped" by Upsolute www.upsolute.com. Highly delighted with the results. Aame impoovements as Superchips only £200 cheaper. Their agent will do the upgrade at home or work.

And I suppose you all informed the insurance company,when you say delighted what do mean the only improvement that could be benificial in the UK is better mpg and thats debatable by using superchips.Remapping for economy is something else .

"And I suppose you all informed the insurance company,when you say delighted what do mean the only improvement that could be benificial in the UK is better mpg and thats debatable by using superchips.Remapping for economy is something else"

I've informed my insurance company, yes. They were not too interested to be honest, £20 extra on the policy. Delighted in that I have both a huge performance increase and higher mpg. Do you have any direct experience of a turbo diesel remap Andy Bairsto? I agree, remapping for economy is something else, but a performance remap, most of the time, will see improved economy if you are not hoofing it everywhere driving with your foot flat to the floor! The money spent on the insurance company and the remap has been offset by the increased fuel economy.

Just a little knowledge I used to write the programs for a well known German tuning company in my spare time.All I will say if you remap for performance then change your cam belt twice as often as recommended or better still fit a Continental long life. As I have said with a 70 limit in the UK there is not much point but here in Germany there is no holds barred.

My experience is that the improvement in performance and negligible difference in fuel economy make the remap a very desirable "option". The extra power means generally less changing down a gear and having to rev it extra hard to get to the speed you need in the timeframe you want. My last 3 diesels have been remappped or chipped and the best improvement to the driving characteristics of the car was to my Picasso HDi which went from 90bhp to 110 bhp making it much better on fast A roads and motorway cruising where before the upgrade it used to struggle to build up speed and maintain it up hills. I'd expect you'd get a similar or better experience with your Trafic which like the Picasso has aerodynamics that work against swift progress!

Andy's comment about the cam belt is interesting and something I'm already planning to do on my current Fabia vRS. The other thing to consider is that if you're upping the bhp the torque goes up at roughly the same percentage so the clutch will be in for some extra stress. Keeping the car in a high gear with low revs and then flooring the accelerator could over time shorten the life of the clutch. The advice I've been given from the company that remapped my car is to keep the revs up when using all the performance of the power upgrade and not to floor it from 1500 rpm.

I had my 115bhp 1.9DCi Volvo S40, which uses a Renault DCi engine, custom remapped a month or so ago.
It was rolling roaded before the map, giving 120bhp and 172lbft and then again afterwards and it now has 156bhp and 222lbft.

Add to this huge difference in smoothness, acceleration and driveability, the increased economy (average 43mpg over 2 months, compared to over 46mpg now), and it's well worth it in my opinion.